Birmingham to hoard Anglo Saxon Gold as Staffordshire Hoard saved for the nation

Photograph: Staffordshire hoard website

Over a month since I posted on the appeal to keep the Staffordshire Hoard in the Midlands, £560,000 golden touch towards saving hoard, a grant of £1,285,000 from the National Heritage Memorial Fund (NHMF) has ensured the treasure will stay in the Midlands, Anglo-Saxon Staffordshire hoard saved by £1.3m heritage grant, Staffordshire Hoard saved for the nation.

The funding has been received three weeks before the April 17th deadline on raising the £3.3 million. Members of the public donated more than £900,000 towards the appeal with Birmingham and Stoke on Trent City Councils also providing funding. The fundraising was started with a £300,000 grant from the Art Fund Charity.

The hoard has been seen by over 100,000 people since its display in Stoke on Trent, Birmingham and the British Museum.

"This is by far the most important archaeological discovery in Britain since the second world war, and beyond that this is a find – of the most extraordinary beauty, brilliance and technical sophistication – which has really caught the imagination of the public."

The culture minister, Margaret Hodge, said: "Thanks to this grant, these superb items will be able to stay – and be enjoyed – where they belong: in the Midlands where they were discovered." http://www.guardian.co.uk/culture/2010/mar/23/staffordshire-hoard-anglo-saxon-grant